CAIRO, July 7 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry will fly to the Chinese capital Beijing on Saturday to discuss bilateral ties with Chinese senior officials, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry's spokesman said in a statement.
Shoukry's visit will be followed by his attendance in the eighth ministerial meeting of China-Arab States Cooperation Forum (CASCF) that will be held in Beijing on next Tuesday, said Egyptian Foreign Ministry's spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid in the statement.
He said Shoukry will meet with Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan and Foreign Minister Wang Yi to discuss the Egyptian-Chinese ties, which have been elevated by the two leaderships in 2014 to the level of "comprehensive strategic partnership."
"The Egyptian-Chinese relations have special importance in the light of the historic ties between the two countries ... in addition to the presence of many common interests between the two sides in different areas," said Abu Zeid, noting that Egypt was the first Arab and African state to establish diplomatic relations with China in 1956.
The CASCF was established in 2004 and it aims to provide multiple mechanisms for Chinese-Arab cooperation in the political, economic and cultural fields.
The CASCF eighth ministerial meeting will be attended by foreign ministers and representatives from Arab countries as well as the Arab League chief.
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi has recently told a Chinese delegation during its visit to Cairo that he's looking forward to visiting Beijing in September to enhance win-win bilateral cooperation.
